It’s a question most mums struggle with – how do you manage to get out of the house on time in the morning with children in tow? We have some great beauty hacks to help (and none of them involve you getting up before 5am)!

One of our readers recently came to us for some advice on how to actually make it to work on time in the morning with two busy kids in the household. Is it physically possible to actually look decent for work, to have your children dressed and fed and to ensure you have packed everything you need?

Apparently it is. Countless mums do it each and every day, myself included. In fact, in a recent study of almost 1600 Australian and New Zealander women, 78 per cent admitted to creating shortcuts to maintain their beauty regime and save time in the morning.

And plenty of mums make it look easy! (Although not me. Just ask my co-workers or my child’s teacher.) We took the question to our readers and received some sensational beauty hacks and time saving tips for busy mums in the morning.

If you are a mum who works outside the home, or if you have trouble making it out of the house on time, then have a read through and share your ideas too.

Use your Sundays

“Do as much lunch box prep as possible on Sundays, like making the week’s sandwiches and freezing them, pre-cutting the fruit etc.”

Get yourself ready first

That way, even if the kids are half naked in the car and missing one shoe, at least you look good, right?

Wear a dressing gown

“Keep a very light dressing gown on over your work clothes to stay clean until you are heading out the door. That way you don’t get baby yoghurt or spew all over your work clothes.”

Shower the night before

One of the most common suggestions we had was to shower the night before. But if you need a quick shower in the morning to wake yourself up, then NIVEA In-Shower Rich Body Lotion could be your new beauty hack best friend.

NIVEA In-Shower Rich Body Lotion is a moisturising body lotion you can apply in the shower. With its special formulation activated by water, it immediately absorbs into the skin, leaving a nourishing coating on the skin’s surface to give it the moisture it needs. Gone are the days where you need to wait around for your skin to absorb moisturiser after showering, and with no greasy after-feeling after rinsing and drying, you can slip clothes straight on and carry on with your day.

Lay everything out the night before

“The night before, pack their daycare bags in the boot of the car and have the dishes for breakfast and Weetbix on the bench ready to eat.”

Get up earlier

“Get up half an hour before your family to have a shower and get sorted before they are awake.”

Don’t rely on TV

“Do not turn the TV on, not even for Sunrise. The kids get too distracted and take hours to eat, get changed and brush their teeth. I switch it on only if they are ready and waiting for me and sometimes it works as a motivator to get them to hurry up.”

Use a routine chart

“In the morning my kids have little routine cards which is like a game to them – they love it! First is toilet, wash hands, breakfast, clean teeth, clothes, hair and if they can get all that done early they are rewarded with play time.”

Cheat with hair and makeup

“Cut time on hair and make up by getting your eyelashes and eyebrows tinted and your eyebrows threaded and get your hair cut in a low maintenance style.”

Sleep-dress the kids

“I dress my two year old while he is still in bed, before he can run away from me.”

Or rely on bubbles

“Take your mirror and make up outside and set up a bubble machine. That way you can actually get ready while the kids watch the bubbles!”

Use travel time wisely

“I feed my son breakfast in the car on the way to daycare with his shirt inside out. Then I just turn it the right way around before I take him in.”

And finally, fake it (till you make it)

Simply wear a hat all day, rely on coffee, hair buns and light makeup and hope for the best!

When returning to work outside the home and trying to organise your morning routine, it takes time. Some mornings are going to be a lot smoother than others. Some mornings you will arrive at school only to discover your son isn’t wearing shoes (ahem, last week). Other days you will arrive at work and notice your shirt is inside out (yesterday).

But with time, patience, practise and very simple beauty hacks, like NIVEA’s In-Shower Body Lotion, you can cut down the preparation time and find your morning routine groove.